Doncaster tells fans to be careful what they wish for

Former Norwich chief executive Neil Doncaster today fires a parting shot at supporters craving a sugar daddy to transform the club's fortunes.

Doncaster and ex-chairman Roger Munby stood down last week in the midst of a growing fans' backlash to City's bitter Championship relegation.

But Doncaster uses his final EDP column to offer a robust defence of the Canaries' much maligned board and, in particular, their stance on attracting fresh investment.

'Please do not assume that grass is greener on the other side, that there are queues of wealthy non-supporters desperate to 'invest' in the club,' he says. 'Such people simply do not exist. Or, if they do, they always, always want something valuable in return. There really is no such thing as a free lunch. It may well be possible for an owner to make a profit out of a football club - that, ultimately is what 'investment' means. But that profit would, in all likelihood, come at a huge cost to the club itself.

'There are many examples of where this has happened, despite the best efforts of the football authorities. Norwich City's most likely route to a secure financial future is, quite simply, wealthy supporters and local businesses using their resources to back the club that they love. This, in combination with continuing efforts to drive further money out of off-field activities, is the way forward. It may be unglamorous. It may sound hackneyed. But I believe it to be fundamentally true.'

Doncaster accepted change in the Carrow Road corridors of power was inevitable after the club's slide into League One.

'Roger Munby and I want only for the best for Norwich City,' he said. 'In circumstances where change is so much in demand, we felt that stepping down was simply necessary for the club to be able to move forward in harmony.'